Chinese playgrounds are different from American playgrounds. They are fundamentally different. In China the playgrounds are designed to instruct while children engage in play. In America playgrounds are designed to be safe at all costs. Here we take a look at the two differences in intent.

• USA = Safe at all costs.
• China = Designed to teach, instruct while having fun.

When you live in another country, you cannot help but make comparisons from your “home” country and your new home. Some of the comparisons are sad, while others are hilariously funny. While some just cause you to simply shake your head. I personally think that when you step out of your home country and experience another reality, you can more clearly see the benefits and the faults of where you have come from.

These comparisons can be stark and astounding.

There are many things that we can compare. In this article, I would like to compare playgrounds. Because, after all, all children learn through play. Play is the “work” of children. A “playground” is an environment, set up by the community to help the children play. It is designed, or at least was initially set up, for “free range” unaccompanied play.

Let’s take a look at playgrounds…

Children Need to Play

The great Fred Rogers once made a statement that play is the work of children. He was absolutely correct. Children learn things rapidly when they are interested. The key to holding that interest is to involve play. Often that is some kind of role-play.

Boys enjoy construction, fabrication, organization, animals, military, hunting, searching, hiding, running, jumping, catching, hitting, practical jokes, and individual play. Girls might also enjoy these things, but they do seemingly have interests in home organization, cooking, fashion, childcare, animals, and group play.

This observation is true no matter what country where you live. You will find young girls playing with dolls in the Sudan, China, Argentina, and the United States. You will find boys playing sports, and military games all over the world. You know, they all also seem to have a fascination with heavy earth-movers and building things.

“This may seem old-fashioned, but there are skills to be learned when kids aren’t told what to do,” said Dr. Michael Yogman, a Harvard Medical School pediatrician who led the drafting of the call to arms. Whether it’s rough-and-tumble physical play, outdoor play or social or pretend play, kids derive important lessons from the chance to make things up as they go, he said.

The advice, issued Monday by the American Academy of Pediatrics, may come as a shock to some parents. After spending years fretting over which toys to buy, which apps to download and which skill-building programs to send their kids to after school, letting them simply play — or better yet, playing with them — could seem like a step backward.

The pediatricians insist that it’s not. The academy’s guidance does not include specific recommendations for the dosing of play. Instead, it asks doctors to advise parents before their babies turn 2 that play is essential to healthy development. It also advocates for the restoration of play in schools.

“Play is not frivolous,” the academy’s report declares. It nurtures children’s ingenuity, cooperation and problem-solving skills — all of which are critical for a 21st-century workforce. It lays the neural groundwork that helps us “pursue goals and ignore distractions.”

When parents engage in play with their children, it deepens relationships and builds a bulwark against the toxic effects of all kinds of stress, including poverty, the academy says.

-Doctors Orders

Play is based on Interest

Without interest, the child will soon be distracted and go off elsewhere. The key to early learning is interest. It is important.

If left alone, a child will find things to play with. They always do. Their interests will generally depend on their gender. (Uh oh! Sound the alarm! politically incorrect statement here!)

That means one of two genders for all of you confused millennial’s out there. Here’s a quick review for those who are confused. It should have been taught to you in elementary school, that is if you were too stupid to figure it out for yourself.

• Boys have a penis.
• Girls have a vagina.
• Humans with a mixture of both are known as a Hermaphrodite.
• Boys with a penis that identify themselves with female interests are known as Homosexuals.
• Girls with a vagina that identify themselves with male interests are known as Lesbians.
• Anything outside of these five conditions is very, very rare. They are what is known as an “Ambiguous Gender”, and are typically treated as someone with a medical disorder.

Now, as far as children goes, there are many exceptions to gender roles.

Some boys like to play house. Some girls like to fight and play war. Many like to do both. The point is that children like to play. If left alone, they will start playing with things in regards to their interests.

Just like you. In fact, exactly like you.

If a boy wants a book on space, don’t force him to rent a book out of the library on butterflies. (Here’s a shout out to the poor kid in Melbourne, Florida who’s mother wouldn’t let him read about rocket ships, and gave him a book on butterflies instead. True story, this.) If a girl wants to read about the latest fashion, don’t make her read about hunting deer.

This should be obvious stuff. A measure of how low our culture has sunk is evident in that I need to explain this most basic premise out.

I remember a post written by a young millennial (on Tumblr) who was upset at her sister. Apparently, her older sister was raising her girls in a more or less traditional manner. She gave them dolls, let them play house and have “tea parties” and dressed them up cute. This upset her younger sister; the young millennial.

When she was asked to “babysit” the girls, while her sister was out, she sprang into action. This was her opportunity. Or, so she thought. So in order to “reverse the damage of gender indoctrination” she bought some toy trucks for the girls. Then she took away the dolls that the girls were playing with. Then after giving the toys to the girls, she let the girls play alone in their room.

An hour later, she went up to check on the girls. She found them there in their room having the time of their lives. They had put the toy trucks to bed (in doll beds) and were reading bedtime stories to them…

The Purpose of an American Playground

Remember when playgrounds were fun? Sure, there was a pretty good chance you’d be scalded by a hot metal slide, or walk away with tetanus, but that’s what memories are made of.

The ground wasn’t coated with soft recycled rubber or sand as most are today – they were asphalt. Remember being hurled from a spinning merry-go-round, then skidding across the gravel at full speed? Good times.

I remember my school playground had a metal ladder “wall” that I swear went up three stories – it didn’t connect to a slide or anything. It was literally a ladder to the sky. I remember fully believing the oxygen was thinner at the top. One false move and I’d have been a flesh colored stain on the asphalt.

We are making playgrounds so safe that they actually stunt our kids’ development. So, while blood was spilt and concussions were dealt on the playgrounds of the 1970s, we were at least in a developmentally rich environment – and we had the bruises and scabs to prove it.

-8 Reasons Children of the 1970s Should All Be Dead

A playground is an area set aside for “free range” unsupervised play. At least that was the initial intention. Today, there are all kinds of playgrounds. Some are supervised, and some are not. Many have benches for adults to sit on and watch the children (at least in the United States they do). China always has places to sit down, as it is usually the grandparents who end up watching the children.

Playgrounds in the past had many elements no longer present. (Well, as far as American playgrounds, that is.) They had “monkey bars” (a construction of bars that children can climb on), “seesaw’s” (a device to move up and down with a partner), “merry-go-rounds” (a large spinning disk that children can push and experience centrifugal forces with), and “slides” (a large structure that a child can slide down on).

Playing on Monkeybars (Image Source.)

The elements each provided an element of play. In making the playgrounds safer, these “dangerous” elements were removed, and no adequate replacements were substituted. In America today we have playgrounds without these critical elements. They are boring and bland.

They are sterile.

History of American Playgrounds

In the old days (about 100 years ago around the time of the Great Depression), every community seemingly had a playground. These playgrounds consisted of “monkey bars”, swing sets, seesaws, and other simple outdoor childhood entertainments. Typically, they had sand at the bottom of the metal (and often concrete) structures to mitigate any cuts, scrapes or broken bones. There was sand at the bottom of the monkey bars, sand at the bottom and end of the slides, and sand below the swing sets.

Photo from Colorbot. Original photo from大昔の子供の遊び場がやばい.

You can read about the history of playgrounds elsewhere. There are some great articles about how playgrounds got started in the city of Boston. As well as how they got started in Chicago , San Francisco and New York City.

Playgrounds become quite popular as a means to keep children off the roads and out of trouble. The advantages of play were obvious, but I am certain, given secondary importance. Back in the day, children were allowed to go out and explore and play. The idea was to create places to keep the children off the streets. Which ended up benefiting everyone. As such, the development of playgrounds continued apace. This continued into my parents’ generation and mine as well. However, over time, the playground equipment became more standardized and mass-produced.

My mother routinely left me alone in the car at a young age while she ran errands. Today, this will literally get you arrested. You see, once upon a time it was okay to leave your kids for long periods without supervision (remember the so-called “latch-key kids” of the 70s?), or let them free roam without constant surveillance. Today, parents won’t let their kids go out to get the mail alone, and any fun with friends has to be scheduled, closely monitored “play dates”.

On summer break or weekends in the 1970s, parents kicked their kids out the front door and didn’t let them back in until the sun went down. “Go play,” were their only words, and you were left to your own devices for hours upon hours. Neighborhoods looked like Lord of the Flies.

-8 Reasons Children of the 1970s Should All Be Dead

This is an American playground in the middle 1960’s. Note the colorful slides, swing sets, and happy children.American playground in the 1960s with slides and swing-sets. (Image Source.)

Though there were efforts that were still made to make them interesting. In Ridgecrest, California, the playground was designed to look like spaceships and a place of adventure. That was the theme in the nearby China Lake military research center. In Hattiesburg, Mississippi, there was a playground that looked like a pirate’s ship. The children could climb up high to the “crow’s nest”. These were not isolated instances. Many communities “dressed up” their playgrounds around themes.

This lasted up until the mid-1980’s.

By the time the 1980’s rolled around, there were numerous small community organizations formed to make playgrounds “safer”, and “better”. These “improvements” resulted in making the playgrounds nice, safe, and very boring. The idea was safety at all costs. Sometimes there was a secondary attention given to exercise, but in all cases there was zero attention to the idea of imaginative play.

For instance, slides became lower. Instead of two stories high (16 feet) during my parents’ generation, and one story high (8 feet) in my generation, they now became four feet high (4 feet) or eliminated altogether. The images on a Google Image Search now apparently show an average of two foot high slides. (16 feet to 2 feet!) “Monkey Bars” became smaller and lower to the ground, if not eliminated completely. Even seesaws and swings became smaller. These “improvements” were welcomed by all the (over) protective parents in their respective communities.

There was only one problem.

The structures were boring and did not challenge the children. They were instead suitable for mentally retarded and handicapped children, infants, and overweight mothers.

My gosh! Children should be challenged while in a safe environment, not coddled until they become an adult.

“…today’s default playground (is the) “the McDonald’s model”: an unchallenging, standardized unit of tunnels, slides, and decks.

“Things like taking risks, learning to fail, learning to master something, to plan ahead, to develop deep friendships, none of those could take place on most playgrounds today.”

- Susan Solomon in “The Science of Play: How to Build Playgrounds that Enhance Children’s Development” as quoted by Ruth Graham, 28MAR14, in the Boston Globe.

Many people in the United States resent what has happened to playgrounds. They yearn for a “simpler time” when children could just go out, run, sweat, climb, play games, and just be a kid. All without breaking some law, or rule.

Most Americans think that just because this trend of playground safety has manifested in the United States that it has manifested everywhere else. (Afterall, the United States is the cultural “leader” of the world…don’t you know.) At least that is the impression that Ruth Graham has. She made the statement that playgrounds in the United States are the same as those in Thailand. But she is quite wrong.

Playgrounds in other nations are NOT sterile and designed for retarded toddlers. They are robust and designed for active children to play in.

All children, kittens and puppies like to play. (GIF Image source.) Here’s a dog for you cat-haters out there…

I strongly believe that children, like cats and puppies, should be encouraged to climb, fight, sing, dance, and do other tasks that involve a moderate level of risk. Playgrounds, like everything else, should be permitted to have some moderate level of risk. It is better to climb in a park near your house than on a mountainside hours from a nearby hospital. If you catch my drift.

“When the first public playground guidelines from the Consumer Product Safety Commission arrived in the early 1980s, the classic playground’s fate was sealed.

By the 1990s, the height and size of new equipment shrank, climbing opportunities disappeared, and guardrails were installed everywhere imaginable. “There’s not as much that’s challenging,” said Colorado photographer Brenda Biondo, whose photographs of classic American playgrounds form the basis of a nostalgic forthcoming book titled “Once Upon a Playground.”

“They’re taking out swings in a lot of places, which is really sad.” Biondo’s book documents now-vanished implements like “stationary jingle-rings” and “giant waves,” plus tall slides and seesaws, prone to cracking kids on the head. Sand itself, the foundational element of those first playgrounds in Boston, fell victim to disability-access regulations and paranoia over junkies’ needles and general dirtiness.

American playgrounds had become dull and homogenous, geared to toddlers more than athletic older kids and dominated by uniform models from catalogs.”

- Ruth Graham, 28MAR14, in the Boston Globe.

Today, there are playgrounds in America. However, they are sterile affairs. They are not stationary toys that children can play upon. They are but arrangements of metal that are called a “playground”, but are anything but that. They are not places where children can play. Compared to playgrounds in the 1960’s, which was full of screaming and running happy children, the playgrounds of today are mostly empty and unused.

Playgrounds in The United States today – Safe

A safe modern American playground. Image Source.

In America today you can find many playgrounds. They have been made “safe” for children. There are no hard surfaces. Nothing is high or tall. There are no moving parts. Though they are typically painted in delightful colorful colors.

Indeed, many of the things that used to be a part of playgrounds in the past are now absent. There are no “monkey bars”. There aren’t any slides, merry-go-rounds, or seesaws. If you are lucky, you might be able to walk up some wheelchair adaptable steps to a two foot height. There are no moving parts. There isn’t much there to inspire creativity. In fact, there really isn’t much of anything there to do at all.

Keeping the picture above in mind, let’s have a look at playgrounds in China…

Playgrounds in China Today – Play

In China, play is considered an important part of childhood development. They use the techniques of play to teach, for education is the most important aspect of a Chinese child’s life.

Unlike the United States, Chinese schools don’t have playgrounds. Instead, they have open areas for group sports and exercise. Most Chinese live in urban areas. In the urban centers, playgrounds tend be located in the most frequented areas; inside the malls and town centers.

While in America, malls have vaporized along with the American middle-class, in China they are quite popular. China has a very robust middle-class. Many malls have playgrounds inside for children to play upon.

A modern Chinese Playground (Image Source.)

I was reminded of this by an event in a local park here in China. There were some children (five and six year old) being taught repelling and climbing skills by a small group of instructors. It turns out that many malls and store complexes in China have these huge climbing complexes of ropes, and netting that children are permitted to go “nuts” over. They are very popular here and are well maintained and monitored. They also offer excursions in local mountainous parks.

If you are ever in China, I would strongly advise all parents to utilize this resource. Don’t limit your child’s development to what the neighborhood busybodies think is appropriate. (They really believe that they have the power over your children. Go to the busybody central; Kid Safety Network.)

While these complexes do not have the kind of seesaw’s that we grew up with as children, they have similar devices with similar purposes. Only this time it is more like a big top that a child or group of children can get inside and toss and spin about in. Monkey bars have been replaced with a network of ladders, ropes, steps on ropes, tires on ropes, and woven tunnels hanging five stories high for the children to play about in.

All Chinese playgrounds are supervised. Image Source.

All Chinese playgrounds have supervision. There are always workers who are paid to make sure that safety is maintained. This does come at a cost, though the cost is small and quite reasonable. The children must wear protective gear and harnesses so they will not fall to their death from six stories up.

The Chinese provide their children with a fine place to climb and explore. Sure there is an element of risk, but there are trained instructors and safety harnesses and helmets provided. Compare that to a modern American playground. There simply isn’t any risk. There isn’t any opportunity to explore and have adventure. It is typically in one or two colors, it consists of a few fences and railings, and some stairs to climb up. It is also very safe. It is the opposite of what is available in China.

The differences between the two playgrounds.

The differences are stark. But, don’t just take my word for it. Just compare the product offerings from playground manufacturers in China to those in the United States. You can see what they make and who they market to. The reader should note that American companies tend to market domestically almost exclusively. While Chinese manufacturers market their products internationally.

Just follow the links and be amazed.

China Playground Manufacturers

• Henan Jianpei Industrial Development Company Ltd. (A personal favorite.)
• Hunan ZhongYi Amusement Equipment Co., Ltd. (For pre-school children.)
• Guangzhou Kira Amusement Equipment Co., Ltd.
• Vasia Huaxia Amusement Co. Ltd.
• Changzhou Warrior Outward Bound Appliance Co. Ltd.

Indeed, this is pretty amazing stuff. Climb ropes and and networks of cages suspended from above, then slide down multi-story rides! Can you imagine? Slide down five story tall slides! Get lost in huge wire baskets, and swing from monkey bar complexes that tower up into the stratosphere! Wow!

Fun for kids of all ages…

The companies in China make their products and ship all over the world. That is, almost everywhere EXCEPT the United States. Other nations, not only China, let their children climb, have fun, and play. However, in most instances, the Chinese companies just doesn’t bother to ship to America. I wonder why?

United States Playground Manufacturers

• American Playground Company
• American Parks Company
• Playworld

Here you can find the makers of the playgrounds that are made for American cities. You will find nice soft surfaces, small and safe slides, a couple of grab bars, lots and lots of hand railings, and some nice safe steps to walk on. Many of them have a platform that is over two feet high that children can stand on. Whoo Hoo!

Let’s face it. Today American playgrounds are pathetic.

Why American Playgrounds became so pathetic

It all began in 1978. Jimmy Carter was president. (But, it really wasn’t his fault.)

An 8-year-old boy by the name of Frank Nelson was playing on a slide in Chicago. He fell and hit his head and the fall resulted in some very serious injuries. The damage resulted in brain damage. It paralyzed his left side and cause speech and vision problems. He also needed to wear a helmet. The attorneys for his mother settled out of court. As such, he was awarded a minimum of $9.5 million (and possibly as much as $29.8 million if he eventually lives to be 75.)

It’s a pretty sad situation. Accidents do occur, and children can get hurt or die. When I was in fifth grade a classmate died when he fell into the ice covered river. My first wife’s uncle died when he was seven. He too fell into the ice covered river. It was something our community knew well, as every five years or so, a child would die under the ice in Winter.

Anyways, back to the child in Chicago…

As a result of this, the city of Chicago decided to tear down all the (so named “tornado”) slides in the city. (This was the mechanism which contributed to the accident with the small boy. They also decided to generally make the playgrounds safer, as they could not afford too many expensive lawsuits.

This settlement, of course, caused a chain reaction.

A tidal wave of lawsuits began the plague the nation. After all, attorneys made BIG money on these kinds of lawsuits. My attorney (when I lived in California) got 90% of any “out of court settlement”, and 60% of the settlement if we took it all the way to court. It was a great racket in the 1980’s, and it still is today.

The lure of big, fast and easy money was seductive.

Attorneys started to look for ways to sue various cities, and there were all kinds of people who wanted to make quick easy cash. Accidents that normally wouldn’t be reported now became national news. For instance, there was the 5-year-old Michigan girl who was strangled on a slide in January when the drawstring from her coat became tangled in one of its bars. In 1988, a 10-year-old Washington, D.C., boy suffered brain damage after falling from an 8-foot climber onto the asphalt below. He was awarded $15 million, which is believed to be the largest settlement of its kind.

To prevent this, many cities started to take preemptive action. They began to make the playgrounds so safe that no one could ever get hurt. They started to ban everything from tires on a rope to slides. They didn’t go six sigma. They went infinity sigma! It’s “zero tolerance” run amok. It was safety at all costs. Who cares about fun. Who cares about child growth. Playgrounds must be SAFE!

Busybodies to Erase Play

Enter an army of busybodies who have one goal in mind; change the purpose of a playground from creative play into a “safe space”. Consider the American organization NPPS, which stands for the National Program for Playground Safety. Their objectives are many, but primarily are directed to reengineer playgrounds so that they are safe for children.

The only problem with this is that there are no thoughts given to the purpose of a playground.

Safe at the expense of play pretty well defeats the purpose of a playground.

You can make claims that the modern American playground designs improve motor skills, and help exercise various muscles. That is all fine and good. However, no one will be exercised if the playground is not utilized. The number one ingredient missing from American playgrounds is something that fires up the imagination of children. Without creative imagination, play is not possible. Without play, there can be no benefit of any playground no matter how carefully it is designed to provide physical exertion.

Here’s how it works…

• Children learn through play.
• Play requires creative imagination, not direction.
• Spaces or places that inspire creative imagination are magnets for playful activities.
• They used to be called “playgrounds”.

This reminds me of a similar progressive initiative by former presidential wife Michelle Obama and her “School Lunch Program”.

Here she mandated healthy food choice for all American children as dictated out of Washington, D.C… Yah, it was healthy, and good for you. However, there was one real problem. No one ate it. The students would get the food and then throw it away without even eating it.

You would think that the damage would be obvious by now.

Who really wants to play on one of these monstrosities?

Ah, but the busybodies are not stopping. There is an entire army of busybodies that wants to bleach out play from playgrounds. They want short, safe and boring locations where children can be parked and not worry about them getting hurt.

In a way, I kind of feel sorry for these people. They mean well, but they can’t understand the basic ingredients necessary to utilize a playground cannot be removed. You need things that inspire and assist in PLAY.

What happens to a cake if you try to make it without flour?

You make it exactly to the ingredients in the recipe, but instead of flour you substitute ground up dog food. You follow the directions on the recipe. You take the “cake” out of the oven. Is it a “cake”, or is it something else? What if you omitted the eggs all together? What if you used orange juice instead of milk? All cakes, regardless of the type, require eggs, milk, flour and sugar.

Playgrounds, regardless of where it is located, should inspire the imagination of children. It should allow them to run, climb and exercise at will. It should also be safe so that MOST children (not ALL children) won’t get hurt. It is after all, a PLAY-ground.

Failure to provide for these needs have created the situation that the United States has found itself in today. We now have playgrounds where “free ranging” play cannot be inspired.

Organizations Against Playgrounds as places for Play

There are numerous (American) organizations involved and concerned about playgrounds. Some, to my disdain, want safety at all costs. Others see the folly in this absolute. They are trying to come up with means and balance. Others are searching for alternative playground options, and how to regulate them out of existence. While still others are trying to introduce some foreign playground ideas on to the American scene. Here are some other related organizations that are trying to figure out what to do about American playgrounds.

They include;

• American Alliance of Health
• Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD)
• Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI)
• National Association for Education of Young Children (NAEYC)
• National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA)
• National Safety Council (NSC)
• Safe Kids Worldwide (SKW)

I am sure that everyone in these organizations has good intentions. That is not the point. The point is that you should NEVER make changes to any plan, program or structure that detracts from its overall purpose. What is the point of safety if children can’t PLAY in a playground?

The point is you can design a car that is so safe that no one is ever killed. You know how? You remove the wheels and let it sit in the driveway. How often do you think that people will use that car?

Employment Opportunities

Today in America, you can become a certified playground inspector. That is correct. Your job is to make playgrounds sterile and bland of fun. It is all done in the interests of saving the city from frivolous lawsuits. I think the prune face, long crooked nose, and pointed black hats are optional.

Other Places & Other Ideas

One of the problem with us, and I mean all of us (myself included), is that we tend to only look at what is right in front of us. We fail to think of alternatives. You, the reader, know this is true. Honestly, have you ever thought about making a playground out of ropes and woven baskets before? Nah. I didn’t think so. Instead, we have a tendency to think of playgrounds in the traditional way. We fail to look at it in other ways.

We need to look at playgrounds as a [1] safe place for children, to [2] play using their imagination.

If we open our eyes just a little bit we can see how other nations, and other peoples, provide opportunities for their children to play. While some of the ideas might seem too dangerous for our American sensibilities, I tend to believe that we have become far too fearful of a nation. We need to let children play on their own a little bit. We need to let them go out and PLAY.

Here are some ideas of things done right elsewhere in the world…

Junk Playgrounds

When I was growing up, I played where I was. If I was in a playground, I played on the things that I found there. This included “monkey bars”, and “swings”. If I was climbing though an old abandoned building, I ended up playing with the junk that I found there. If I was in the woods, I would play in the trees and bushes that grew there. Children will pay with anything. They key is that you need to provide them a safe place to play in.

Enter the concept of “Junk Playgrounds”. Here, an area is set aside full of junk and discards so that children can play in and about it. It’s a great concept, and the children absolutely love it. Here are some great links to get your ideas flowing…

• “Junk playgrounds” show the value of free play for kids (Video)
• The Junk Playground of New York City
• Is this the perfect playground, full of junk?
• Junkyard or playground paradise? Kids making their own adventures
• Emdrup Junk Playground
• Mobile Junk and Nature Playground
• ‘Junk’ playground The Land, Wrexham inspires US guests
• Where The Wild Things Play

Nature Playgrounds

Why play with junk when there are beautiful trees to climb, brooks to splash in, and meadows to run upon? There is a movement that believes that nature can prove elements of creative play just as well as any formal or structured playground could. Of course, this idea did not originate in the USA. To follow this train of thought and explore these opportunities for childhood adventure, one must look outside the USA prism.

I am specifically NOT referring to sanitized ultra-safe American style playgrounds that are dressed up to look like trees.

I am specifically referring to real parks and areas that are designed for children to play in. Some are nothing more than rustic versions of the ultra-safe American playgrounds. I suggest a little bit of risk, a lot of nature and a safe central area for access.

Here are some great links;

• Nature playgrounds designed around plants and wood.
• The All-Natural Playground
• Westminster welcomes hub of tree houses in new nature playground
• Earthplay – Provides resources to build your own nature playground

What can you Do?

Many of us, well we sit back and just accept things as they are. We argue, “Hey that is the way things are and there is nothing that I can do.” But this is very wrong. This is “wrong-headed” thinking. There are many things that you can do. There are many levels of engagement.

1. Look at what kinds of playgrounds are near you. Are any of them actually being used? If so, then how? We need to look at playgrounds from the prism of both safety AND fun.

2. Find out who is responsible for the playground. This might be something as simple as talking to the town board in your community, or the people who actually own the property that the playground is on.

3. Talk to them. Do not be some kind of radical who demands everyone change everything immediately. Suggest minor (and I do mean minor) changes to improve it. If it is not safe, improve that aspect of it. If it is not fun, then concentrate in that aspect. Remember the goal is to make playgrounds BOTH safe and fun for children to play in.

4. Concentrate on a balance. The tomato at grocery stores today taste like a cardboard box because it was bred to ship like a cardboard box. No one paid attention to the taste of the tomato. In a like way, by concentrating on safety at all costs, you lose the primary purpose of a playground; individual imaginative play. Strike a balance on having both elements at the playground at the same time.

5. Ask for help. Sometimes you cannot do things alone. Yet there are many others who might want to work with you. Let them.

6. If you hit a blank wall, go your own way. Create your own park / playground. Do it your way. There are many “experimental” types of playgrounds that are designed for interaction with nature, or pile of junk or anything in between. Do your own thing; your way. Then tell us about it. Do not be shy!

7. Remember what it was when you were a kid. I well remember spending hours playing in the nearby stream. I remember what it was like to climb trees. Maybe that is all you need is a place with lots of trees to climb and a sign that says “kids can play here and climb all they want”.

8. Beware of the busybodies. They will try to threaten you, and try to get your involved in the fear of legal action. Put up disclaimers and protect yourself. If you have the financial resources, organize neighborhood monitors to keep things safe.

9. Do it your way.  Finally, and above all else; don’t follow what other people do. DO IT YOUR WAY!

Take Aways

Here are some important points that need to be underlined;

• Playgrounds should be places to inspire children to play.
• An accident in Chicago, and the judicial failure to put limits on the monetary awards, resulted in a sterilization of all American playgrounds.
• America has altered playgrounds to be safe at the expense of play.
• Other nations do not follow the United States model.
• In China, playgrounds are set up quite differently.
• America needs to redesign playgrounds to fit the purpose for them.
• It is profitable to make playgrounds sterile and boring.
• Anyone can make their own playground.

RFH

How about a Request For Help? I tire of busybodies and statists who poke fun at the ideas and experiences of others. They offer no constructive dialog. Rather they just make fun, ridicule, and then scurry under a rock.

I use this forum as a way to disseminate some of the things that I learned though my own personal experiences. I am not the best person in the world, indeed, I am quite faulted. The best that I can do is share my opinions about things that interest me, and flavor it indirectly with my unusual understandings.

So, if you, the reader, were so interested, I would welcome your stories about how playgrounds are beneficial. I would welcome any stories about playgrounds in other nations. I would welcome a discussion on the positives and the negatives of playground design. I would welcome ideas on new ideas, construction techniques and ways to stimulate a child to be involved in creative play. I would welcome stories about creative and useful playgrounds that you have encountered. I would welcome thoughts on things that children would like to play with.

This is my callout to you, the reader. I am sure that you have some stories or ideas that can help pull us out of the big “tar pit” that playgrounds have become. Please feel free to comment.

FAQ

Q: Are American playgrounds safe?
A: Yes they are.

Q: Can people get hurt in playgrounds?
A: Yes, they can. However, most serious accidents at a playground are extremely rare.

Q: Does China have playgrounds for children?
A: Yes they do. They have different types depending on the age range.

Q: Is it ok to allow children to play in playgrounds unsupervised.
A: Yes it is.

Q: What are the differences between Chinese and Americans in playground use?
A: The Chinese train their children to take risks. They make sure that the children are trained and instructed properly. They then provide opportunities for the child to use the skills learned. Once they have demonstrated competency, the child is left to fend for themselves. In America, the child is continually supervised. They are not trained, nor instructed. They are also not expected to make decisions on their own.

Q: Does childhood playgrounds influence Chinese culture in America today?
A: It is an influence, among other factors. In general, the Chinese parent expects their child to learn, and then apply what they learn. Playgrounds are used as a controlled location for the child to explore and utilize their learned skills.

Q: Is the Chinese American lifestyle similar to the Chinese lifestyle?
A: It is similar, but there are notable differences. The Chinese child is permitted much more freedom than their Chinese American counterpart. Both are expected to learn and work hard to achieve very high goals and parental expectations.

Q: Do the Chinese in America today prefer American or Chinese playgrounds?
A: I really do not know. However, I would be very surprised if any Chinese American parent would forbid their child to play in a Chinese playground. It is viewed as a learning resource. It is not considered a place of play

Other Great Articles on Playgrounds

The best one that I have found so far is HERE. It is titled “Playground Fun” on the RetroJunk website. It’s a fun read, with ample pictures. The author is a little bit like myself. Lots of pictures, and stories. Read it.

Links about China

Articles & Links

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